In the shadow of human worth
Source: in-cyprus.com
Heated debates rage across Europe over retirement age limits as part of a broader continental puzzle.
Whilst the issue does not appear immediately pressing in Cyprus, these trends cannot leave the country untouched.
The stark reality is that continuously rising life expectancy, combined with plummeting birth rates, creates an explosive demographic cocktail across Europe.
These cold facts shape policies, yet approaches addressing the human factor remain largely overlooked.
Behind cold numbers and grim economic forecasts lies a deeper issue: the devaluation of human worth and life itself. Some today might suspect this requires considerable insight to recognise.
The projections are clear. Greece presents a particularly telling case. Actuarial study data indicates gradual increases in retirement age limits, with the general threshold reaching 68.5 years by 2030 and 72.5 years by 2070.
This trend appears in other European countries. Danish legislation provides for gradual increases, reaching 69 years by 2035 and 70 years by 2040.
This modernised model clearly treats citizens as economic units rather than human beings.
Most naturally for our times, this policy—whilst potentially viewed as ensuring system sustainability—essentially transforms human life into a sterile numerical equation.
People are required to work additional years not because they desire or can endure it, but because economic indicators demand it. Meanwhile, defining quality of life remains an afterthought.
Simply put: raising retirement age limits means people will work at advanced ages, often facing health problems and diminished physical capabilities.
The genuine role of elderly people in society—whether as grandparents or active citizens generally—is desperately ignored.
When a person’s value is determined by productivity levels—and here the concept of productivity relies solely on figures and numbers—life’s deeper meaning is lost.
This represents not merely an economic problem, but a social challenge.
Perhaps consideration should extend to other parameters: strengthening youth employment, supporting families to increase birth rates, and creating new, more flexible and human-centred work models.
The discussion must shift from numbers to human value. What is needed is not simply system survival, but ensuring dignified life—as far as society can bear it…
The original article: belongs to in-cyprus.com .
